Article Search

How pH is Measured

Thursday, October 15, 2009 &nbsp|&nbsp 1 Comment

by Christopher Vasey

pH is a measure of acidity and alkalinity. The pH scale goes from 0 to 14. At pH 7, the half way point, there is a balance between acidity and alkalinity. The “p” comes from the word power or potential. The “H” is the symbol for the element of hydrogen. Together, the term pH means “Potential of hydrogen”. The greater potential a substance has for freeing hydrogen ions, the smaller its pH value is. The pH scale is logarithmic, meaning that the values separating each unit are not of equal value along the scale but increase in proportion to their distance from the midway point of an even balance between acidity and alkalinity.

As you can see (Chart below), once you begin the downward cycle of acidification, each point you drop actually calculates to a 10 fold decrease in pH. For example, urinary pH of 6 is 10 times more acidic than 7. This imbalance is relatively easy to correct. On the other hand, urinary pH of 5 is quite a different story. While it may appear that 5 is only “One point less” than a reading of 6, in actuality it is 100 times more acidic than 7.

It is important to understand that the more acidic you have become, the greater the effort you’ll have to make in order to get back into balance. If you have led an acidifying lifestyle your whole life, the road to restoration certainly will not happen overnight. The degree to which you alter and supplement your diet will determine how quickly you reach a balanced state.

Restoring pH Balance in your body is a process, not an event. The process requires both a change in diet, and proper supplementation.

In order to test the pH of your body, you'll need to get some pH test strips. These strips will measure the pH of your urine or saliva, which is a good indicator of the pH levels of your tissues, cells, and fluids.